The weeks ahead will be filled with many opportunities to celebrate the Advent season! At anytime you can go to www.fpcauburn.org/advent to find out more details about where and when each event will happen and how you can participate. Click on any event in the calendar for more details and/or to add it to your own Google calendar!

This week:

9:45am - Light of the World: A Beginner’s Guide to Advent,

Adult Sunday School Class in Baird Hall

11am - Children Leading Worship (pizza party for children to follow)

2pm - Auburn Christmas Parade: Come join us in the courtyard for fellowship and hot chocolate! Bring a chair and cheer on our children as they participate in the parade! (Please see message below for important parking information.)

6pm - UKirk Christmas Party

Next week:

9:45am - Adult Advent Sunday School Class (Baird Hall)

11:00am - Special Music in Worship

5pm - Youth Group Christmas Party

Please note that if you plan on joining us in the courtyard to watch the Auburn Christmas Parade, the roads will be closed to incoming traffic at noon. They will allow outgoing traffic until 1:30. You may either park outside the church lot and walk to the FPC Courtyard to view the parade or, if you need to get into our church parking lot between 12 and 1:00, parking passes will be available at the church on Sunday morning. This is the only way they will let you through and into our parking lot. (Please approach the barricades at Thach and Gay streets intersection.) The downtown parking decks will be available for parking without the need of our parking pass. At 1pm they will stop letting incoming traffic through until after the parade.

We apologize for the last minute notice and appreciate everyone's grace and flexibility.

ALL current COVID-related policies including worship procedures, building use policies, small group gatherings, masking, and requests for exceptions can now be found on www.fpcauburn.org/covid. This page will be updated as changes are approved by the church's session.

(contact Chris Sarkowski for information on classes ages preK-12th grade

and Rev. Kathy Reed for information on adult classes)

✵ 9:00 & 11:00 a.m.: In-Person, Indoor Worship -  If you attend one of the indoor services you will notice many differences from our "normal" sanctuary worship. At this time, based on recommendations from our COVID Task Force and Session, we will have a very simple service without passing of the peace and several other elements you might be looking forward to sharing with your church family. However, as local conditions and guidelines continue to improve it is our greatest hope that we will begin adding back in all these elements of worship we know and love. Thank you so much for your patience and grace as we try to maintain the greatest level of safety for our congregation, musicians, worship leaders, and our greater community.

At the sign-up link below (and the email containing the sign-up sent on Thursday), you will find detailed information on our current protocols for worship attendance.

✵ 11:00 a.m.: Virtual Worship - We are pleased to announce that we are live-streaming our worship service at 11 a.m. What this means is that those worshiping from home will be able to watch the service live as it is happening in the sanctuary. To view the service you can go directly to our church’s YouTube Channel via your computer, smartphone, or Smart TV app (https://tinyurl.com/t7dl8vh) or you can access the worship service through our website or Facebook page.

If you are unable to watch live at 11 a.m., a recorded version of the service will be available at these same links later in the day.

Although Advent has just begun, the new calendar year will be here before we know it and we are in need of volunteers to serve as lay readers. Any and all are welcome to sign up, and we encourage readers of ALL ages. If youth or children would like to help lead worship, we will be glad to have them serve.

We have a new Sign-up Genius page for those wishing to provide flowers for the Sanctuary! If you would like to cover the cost of flowers for Sunday morning worship, please sign up for a date here: https://tinyurl.com/Sanctuaryfloral.

If you are unable to sign up online, you may contact Sarah Wolak at 334-728-7853 to sign up for a date. While the Sign-Up Genius page only has one slot available for each week, you are welcome to split the cost with another family-- just be sure to write both names in the comments section. The cost of the flowers has been increased to $50 per arrangement, not including tax and delivery fee. As before, you are welcome to bring the arrangements home after the service, or to leave them to be delivered to other members of the congregation.

Children Pre-K through 5th grade

•   Our Pre-K through 5^th graders will be leading worship this Sunday! The Pre-K through 1^st graders will be singing two songs and 2^nd through 5^th graders will have speaking parts.

Then after worship we will have a pizza lunch and participate in the Christmas Parade. It’s going to be a great day! (Please see information above about parking/pass.)

•   The nursery is available from 9:30 until noon on Sunday mornings for children birth to age 3.

•   Godly Play: After the Word to Grow By (at 11 a.m. worship), children ages 4 to 1st grade will go to the Godly Play room to worship together for the remainder of the worship service.

•   Worship bags are also available for all children during worship.

•   Children’s Sunday school will meet this Sunday from 9:45 – 10:45 upstairs in the children’s classrooms. There will be two classes, Pre-K through 1st grade and 2nd through 5th grade.

•   Masks are required indoors for children 3 & over and youth, as well as all adults working with them.

Jr. and Sr. High Youth

•   Jr. and Sr. High Sunday school meets weekly from 9:45 – 10:45am upstairs in the Sr. High room.

•   No Youth Fellowship this Sunday.

•   Mark your calendars, the Charleston Youth Mission Trip for Jr. and Sr. High Youth will be June 5-10, 2022 (this is a new retreat, more info to come)

•   Mark your calendars, the Montreat Youth Conference for rising 9th graders through graduated seniors will be July 10-16, 2022

•   Mark your calendars, the Montreat Middle School Conference for rising 6th through rising 8th graders will be July 20-24, 2022 (this is a new conference, more info to come)

If you are not already in a PW Circle and would like to join, you are most welcome. Circle leaders are Barbara Dunham #1 (229.881.2957), Susan Stanley #2 (334.203.1951), and Barbara Fletcher #3 (334.203.1484).

The church is now open from 9 a.m.-12 p.m., M-F, for any members needing to drop in on church business. If the door is locked when you arrive, please ring the bell.

Masks are still required, and for contact tracing purposes a sign-in sheet will be placed on the small table outside the kitchenette where you will be asked to provide your name and the date/time/purpose of your visit. Small group gatherings must still be arranged with your designated staff person. Thank you for your patience and understanding as the staff continues to operate without designated volunteers to answer the door and phones.

Birthdays

Dec. 7 - Lily Wells, Duncan Whatley

Dec. 9 - Mary Baird

Dec. 10 - Emmie Larson, Terri Rouillard

Dec. 11 - Conrad Bonsi

Anniversaries

Dec. 6 - Ed and Dorothy Moran

• Prayers of healing for Shane Klugh as he recovers at home after successful back surgery.

• Prayers of healing for Carol Griffin as she recovers at home after successful surgery.

• Prayers of healing for Donna Yeager’s son-in-law as he recovers in Brooklyn after being very sick from a breakthrough covid infection.

• Prayers of healing for Bill Combs as he receives treatment for cancer.

• Prayers for Amy Kilner and her family (daughter in law of Dorothy Moran). Amy is in need of a kidney transplant and is currently looking for a donor.

• Prayers of healing for Belinda (friend of Karen Herring), as she continues treatment and learns the progress of her treatment for cancer. Prayers for her spouse Pooie as she cares for Belinda.

• Prayers of healing for Jason Banks (Margaret Brinkley’s neighbor). Jason is recovering at home after a car accident.

• Please continue to pray for many members of our church who are dealing with illness or significant health issues, but at this time do not wish to be mentioned by name.

• We continue to pray for healing and wholeness for those dealing with issues related to Covid-19. We also continue to pray for all the health care workers as they tend to everyone’s well being.